How to Make a Box out of a Card

Greeting Card Box Craft

c/o Sherri Osborn

Here's how you can easily create small boxes using old greeting cards; it's a great way to use up Christmas cards, birthday cards and more. This project takes about twenty minutes (plus drying time and is suitable for children ages eight and up.

Continue to 2 of 10 below.

02 of 10

Gathering the Supplies

c/o Sherri Osborn

Gather all the supplies you'll need before beginning.

Materials

Greeting Card (You can use both square and rectangular greeting cards for this box.)

Pen or Pencil

Cellophane Tape

Ruler

Scissors

Continue to 3 of 10 below.

03 of 10

Cut the Card in Half

c/o Sherri Osborn

Start by cutting the card in half. This is done easily by cutting the back off of the card along the fold. You should then have two pieces of equal size.

Continue to 4 of 10 below.

04 of 10

Trim the Back of the Card

c/o Sherri Osborn

Cut just a sliver off of each edge of the back of the card. The back should be about 1/8" to 1/4" small than the front.

Continue to 5 of 10 below.

05 of 10

Measure and Mark

c/o Sherri Osborn

Lay both the front and the back of the greeting card on your table with the side that was the inside of the greeting card facing up.

Line up the ruler along one of the short edges and mark the card 3/4" from each corner. Repeat this on the other short side.

Now line up the ruler along one of the long edges, mark the card 3/4" from each corner, and then make another mark 3/4" in from there. Repeat this for the other long side.

Continue to 6 of 10 below.

06 of 10

Draw Lines on the Cards

c/o Sherri Osborn

Use the picture as a guide to draw lines on each of your greeting card pieces.

Using a ruler and pen, connect each of marks you made on the short edges of the card.

Note that the marks you made 3/4" from the corner on the long side of the card are not connected. Line up a ruler along those marks and draw a line from one line to another, not going all of the way to the edge of the card.

Finally, use the ruler to connect the second marks you made on each of the long edges.

Continue to 7 of 10 below.

07 of 10

Cut the Cards

c/o Sherri Osborn

Use the scissors to cut on each line you draw on the short edge. Only cut up as far as the intersecting line which should be about 1 1/2" from the edge.

Continue to 8 of 10 below.

08 of 10

Folding the Sides of the Card Box

c/o Sherri Osborn

Start off by making two folds along the side with the two lines you drew. First, fold in the edge on the first line you drew until it touches the second line. Then fold it in again on the second line.

On the other edges of the card, fold in each edge on the line you drew. Now fold in each of the pieces - or tabs - you cut.

Continue to 9 of 10 below.

09 of 10

Assembling Your Card Box

c/o Sherri Osborn

Use the photo as a guide. Hold the folded edge with the tabs up. Bend the tabs so they line up with the other side. Fold the other edge up and over the tabs. Use a small piece of tape to hold it in place.

Repeat this for the other side of the box and again for the other half of the box.

Continue to 10 of 10 below.

10 of 10

Finishing Your Card Box

c/o Sherri Osborn

You should now have a complete top and bottom! The top should fit easily over the bottom since you trimmed a little extra off of the bottom card piece.

These boxes are not only a great way to recycle used Christmas, birthday, and other cards, they also make great gift boxes for small treats.

Experiment with different box depths by adjusting the 3/4" measurement.